Leebie pushed open the garage door — and nearly hit Amram in the face

Two cats awaited Leebie on the top step in front of her house when she arrived home.

No, please, not again.

They stared at her defiantly, fearless green eyes challenging her: Can we coexist in peace?

No, we cannot. I know that for a fact.

Her heart pounded even as she stared back with feigned confidence. She clapped her hands to frighten them away, except they weren’t afraid of her. Some very thoughtful woman — the Cat Mommy, her kids called her — had made it her mission to feed these stray felines, depositing trays of cat food and milk near the bushes on the corner of the block, and it so happened that the Herzogs lived in the corner house, so the cats felt right at home on their property.

“Shoo!” Leebie shouted.

The whiskered mouths smirked, like, let’s not kid ourselves, who’s the one quailing here? But then, as though to appease her, they curled their tails and jumped over the fence into the driveway.

Still breathing rapidly, Leebie punched in the code on the front door and walked into the house.

The silence hit her unexpectedly. She was home early for a change. Or rather, on time, but on time had come to feel like early over the years. She had around an hour to herself before Rikki would get home from seminary and Dassi’s bus would come.

For a moment she felt paralyzed, unsure what to do in her own company. Eat? Get supper ready? Clean the bathrooms? She laughed to herself as she heard her sister Miriam’s voice play in her head: “You’re forever cleaning your bathrooms!” What did Miriam know? She had cleaning help three times a week, while Leebie, per Amram’s opposition, had none.

She snapped out of the daze quickly. Supper and the bathrooms would have to wait; she’d come home early for a reason. Still in her sheitel and work clothes, she dashed down the stairs to the garage. Thanks to Amram’s recent cleanup project, she knew exactly where to find her piercing gun. She’d hide it in the coat closet before anyone came home, and then sit down to call her old earring vendors.

Leebie pushed open the garage door — and nearly hit Amram in the face.